National Health Expenditure Trends

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Use the National Health Expenditure Database (NHEX) to discover how much is spent on health care annually, in what areas money is spent and on whom, and where the money comes from. Learn more about comparative expenditure data at the provincial, territorial and international levels, as well as Canadian health spending trends from 1975 to the present.

Key findings

Total health spending is forecast to reach $6,604 per Canadian in 2017, almost $200 more per person than in 2016 ($6,419).

Total health expenditure per person is expected to vary across the country from $7,378 in Newfoundland and Labrador and $7,329 in Alberta to $6,367 in Ontario and $6,321 in British Columbia.

Internationally, Canada’s health spending per person in 2015 (CA$5,782) was similar to spending in France (CA$5,677), Australia (CA$5,631) and the United Kingdom (CA$5,170).

Hospitals (28.3%), drugs (16.4%) and physician services (15.4%) are expected to continue to use the largest share of health dollars in 2017. Since 1997, hospitals have accounted for the most significant share of health spending, followed by drugs and physician services.